It's in Their Touch
by nyladnam04
Summary: Ginny is impatient with how slowly her relationship with Harry is progressing. Armed with some insight from Ron and her favorite Young Witches romance novel, she sets out to teach Harry about "touch."
1. Chapter 1

A/N: This was written for the SIYE Seven Words Challenge.

A/N2: Thanks to Jenn for the inspiration. I probably wouldn't have wrote anything for this if she hadn't been discussing acronyms. It was such a good idea, that I was inspired to use acronyms too. Sort of. Also, thanks to Jenn for the beta work. It would have been about 3,000 words shorter if she hadn't poked and prodded the "potential" until it got up, snapped back and went to work.

'_I love you.'_

How many times had Ginny dreamt of those words being spoken to her by Harry Potter when she was younger?

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"No dear. You hold the quill like this." Her mummy paused as Ginny tried to correct her grip on the quill. "There! We won't worry about dipping it into ink right now. A Self-Inking Quill is better for learning to write. Now, watch how I make the 'G.' Start at the top and make a big curve. Then we make one little line here and another little line right...here. Alright, dear, now you try."

Ginny smiled at her mother, excited to be learning how to write her name. All of her brothers, even Ron, could all write their names. She wanted to be able to make a sign for her door so everyone would know that it was _Ginny's_ room, not _Ginevra's._

It was harder to write a 'G' than she had expected. Her mum's letter was beautiful and made Ginny proud that her name started with such a pretty letter. Ginny's own big curve was wobbly and the little lines were just wrong. It didn't seem to matter how ugly her 'G' was to her mummy, however.

"Oh, Ginny dear, that's lovely! With a little practice, you'll have it down in no time! Now let's try the 'I.'"

The lesson on writing her name continued, occasionally being interrupted by one of her brothers. The four year old couldn't wait to learn the things that her brothers were learning. Ron was reading his favourite story, _Babbitty Rabbitty and her Cackling Stump_. Fred and George were doing some sort of maths that included playing with Mum's cooking things and figuring out how many biscuits each of them would get from the batch Mum had baked that morning. Of course Percy had already completed all of the work Mum had assigned him for the day and was reading Bill's old first year Potions book so that he could be ready for the upcoming September.

While her mum was explaining to the twins how many different ways they could use her measuring spoons to fill a large jar, Ginny's daddy came in the back door. Ginny rushed to her father and threw her arms around him.

"What did you do today, Ladybug? It looks like you've been busy with the ink!" Ginny laughed and then pulled her daddy over to show him her efforts at writing her name.

"I wanted to make a sign for my door that says _'_Ginny's Room,' but I think I'm done." He winked at her before picking up the quill and adding a few more letters to her bit of parchment.

"There you go, Ladybug. Now you have a sign all ready to hang on your door." With a flick of his wand, Spell-O-Tape flew from a cluttered drawer into his hand. "How about you go hang it up and then wash your hands?" Ginny followed her daddy's instructions before dinner.

When Ginny's parents tucked her in later that night, her mum promised to help Ginny make her letters pretty and her dad read her favourite "Boy-Who-Lived" book. The last thing she remembered before drifting off to sleep was saying "I love you" to her mum and dad.

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Ginny peeked out of her room, checking both ways to make sure that the coast was clear. She quietly slipped down the steps. Her mum saw Ginny the moment she entered the kitchen. With a knowing smirk, she handed Ginny a basket and told her to be back in time for supper.

As quickly as possible, Ginny scampered to the tree house that she had long ago staked as _hers_. Ron was the only one of her siblings brave enough to still go in it at all, but she was okay with that since he never tried to kick her out of it. If he couldn't play with her, he left her alone.

The moment she was inside of the tree house, she emptied the large rucksack she had slung across her back before leaving her room. Out tumbled a bit of filmy cloth, her seventeen favourite stuffed animals and dolls, a green dress that had to have the skirt doubled up so she didn't trip over it, a pair of white shoes with lots of snaps on them, two short sticks, and two small ribbons that had been knotted into circles.

It took her several minutes to set up the dolls and stuffed animals just the right way. Most sat facing the front, where a unicorn from one of her mum's aunts sat facing the crowd. Ginny had used Spell-O-Tape to fasten a pair of spectacles over the unicorn's eyes and had pinned a dark blue bit of fabric from her mum's sewing room to it. In her modest opinion, the unicorn looked just like the picture of Professor Dumbledore from her Chocolate Frog card that featured him.

In front of the unicorn were her two favourite dolls from the Romantic History collection Aunt Muriel had been giving Ginny since she was born. Aunt Muriel would be horrified to know that Ginny played with the dolls when the old woman had intended the dolls be left in their packages since they were collector items.

Thankfully, Ginny's mum thought giving a child such things was ridiculous and had told the nine year old that she could play with them if she wanted to. So Romeo stood facing Juliet, their lovely blue and red satin clothing faded and their pale perfect faces smudged with dirt. Ginny had left Juliet alone, but she had fastened some orange yarn onto Romeo's head. In this little game, Romeo had been renamed "Ron." She didn't really have a different name for Juliet and almost left her with that name, but decided she had to be fair. After contemplating the little doll's dark ringlets for quite some time, Ginny ended up dubbing the doll "Elizabeth."

Ginny placed her favourite toy in its place between "Ron" and "Elizabeth" and then donned her green dress and white shoes. It took her several moments to tuck the filmy bit of fabric into her hair band, but she finally got it to fall across her face as a sort of veil.

Once she was ready, she walked between the assembled toys until she was right next to "Ron," "Elizabeth," "Dumbledore," and her favourite stuffed animal, "Harry Potter."

Now, as much as Ginny wished for it, there was no Harry Potter doll. Bill had tried to explain to her once that since the real Harry Potter was a kid (only a year older than Ginny) that no one could make money off of his name or from things that looked like him without his guardians' permission. Everyone knew Harry Potter lived with his Muggle relatives and obviously they wouldn't be able to deal with Goblins, so all that was allowed were a small series of "Boy-Who-Lived" books and a few paragraphs in history books.

"Besides," Bill had told her giving her "THE LOOK" that clearly said he knew much more than she did. "All we know about what he looks like is that he has black hair, green eyes and a lightning bolt-shaped scar on his forehead."

Her mum had refused to make her a doll, but never said why. So Ginny had improvised. Her mum's cousin had sent several Muggle toys a few years back and each of her brothers had picked what they wanted from the lot. Naturally, Ginny had been stuck with the worst toy. It was a small spotted fawn that had the name "Bambi" attached to it.

She had absolutely hated that deer until she had made a few changes.

Instead of throwing it in the rubbish bin, she had gotten her father to charm the eyes green. Then, she'd sewn a bit of black yarn on its head. Try as she might, she couldn't get the yarn to lay flat, but she decided she preferred the yarn sticking up anyway. If it had laid flat, the yarn might look like a girl's hair instead!

Lastly, she'd drawn a lightning bolt right above its right eye. She'd done all of that several years ago and by now, all her brothers knew about her homemade Harry Potter doll. Fred and George had dubbed him "Bambi Potter." Regardless of the teasing, the little deer had been her favourite toy for years. It went everywhere she went and had an honoured place on her pillow every night.

This day, though, was extra special because she was playing her most favourite game.

Ginny pitched her voice for Dumbledore asking if Harry Potter and Ginevra Weasley loved each other and wanted to get married. Changing back to her own voice, she answered herself with a happy, "Yes!" Then she tried to deepen her voice and answer for "Harry" as well.

She went through the entire wedding, or as much as she could remember from one of her dad's cousin's wedding, talking for herself, Harry, Dumbledore, Ron and Elizabeth. She even cheered for the wedding guests.

At the end of the ceremony, she double checked to make sure her pesky brothers weren't spying on her before she gave "Harry" a quick kiss. Then she picked the toy up and they danced around the tree house.

Finally, she opened the basket her mother had given her to find a small cake and a flask of apple juice. Ginny pretended to feed her "groom," careful not to get icing on the matted fur.

They danced again, with Ginny giggling the whole time and making up a conversation between her and her groom. She was certain he'd be perfect, telling her how much he loved her and how beautiful she was.

When she noticed how late it was, Ginny quickly threw all of her toys and wedding finery back into her rucksack, cleaned up the cake crumbs and scrambled down the tree. She made it into the kitchen with only moments to spare and her mum quickly helped her hide the evidence of her game before her brothers thundered into the kitchen.

Her dad gave Ginny a knowing smile as she sat beside him for supper. "Dreaming again today, Ladybug?"

"Yes, Daddy." She took a bite of her potatoes and wondered how many stars she'd need to wish on for her dream of marrying Harry Potter to come true.

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"Did you honestly believe that someone like you would be good enough for a celebrity like Harry Potter? Even if he defeated a powerful wizard on a fluke, he could have any witch he wanted. Why would he pick such an ugly little nobody like Ginny Weasley?"

The handsome boy that had appeared in a mist form from her beloved diary paced in front of her, sneering and laughing at Ginny's weakness. It teased her cruelly about writing "Ginny loves Harry" in the diary's pages.

"Why waste precious ink or my time on girlish drivel?" he crowed.

The last thing Ginny thought of before her world went black on that damp, cold floor in front the horrible statue was, _'If I live, I'm never writing down who I love again.'_

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As she got older, she realized there was much more to romance than holding hands and saying "I love you." Oddly enough, this was Romilda Vane's doing.

"I thought you could use some help. I've outgrown these _children's_ books. I'm reading the _Flowers in_ _Bloom_ books now. The _Young Witches_ novels are for _beginners_." She looked Ginny up and down. "Well, even beginner books might be too advanced for you. You've got to start somewhere, though. I'm always happy to help out the less fortunate."

"Now see here, you little doxy! I don't need _your_ help! I'm plenty advanced and just where do you get--" but Ginny was cut off by the younger girl.

"Oh, there's no need to thank me." Romilda flipped her perfectly straight black hair over her shoulder. "They might even help you get noticed by a boy."

Ginny was outraged. "Excuse me, but I've been dating Michael since the beginning of June. I don't think I need help getting a boy to notice me!" She picked up one of the books Romilda had dumped onto her bed, intending to throw it at the younger witch's back as she walked out of the third year girls' dorm.

The second year didn't even turn around. "Well then, they should be able to tell you what to do to keep him." Then she was out the door. Ginny was alone in her dorm room with a sizeable pile of books that she knew her mother would say were full of scarlet women.

At first, Ginny had been embarrassed to read them. Apparently Romilda had a somewhat skewed idea of how old a "Young Witch" actually was. Words like 'derrière' and 'lustful' jumped out from the pages. The witches and wizards were almost always at odds until finally they 'made love.'

Eventually, she began to read the books frequently and often charmed the covers to look like innocuous library books.

Ginny was sitting curled up in the library of Grimmauld Place reading her favourite book, _Charming Cordelia,_ when Hermione walked in, looking bored. Once Harry had listened to her about the fact he wasn't exhibiting the signs of being possessed, he and Ron had taken to helping Sirius with several small projects that Ron had said were for "blokes only." Ginny suspected that Sirius was allowing them to try Firewhiskey and all three were aware of how Hermione would react to that.

Her friend seemed to be searching for something to read and wasn't paying much attention to the younger witch. Ginny quickly checked the cover of her book to make sure it was still charmed to say _Charms for the Charming_. Seeing her secret was safe, she sighed and went back to reading about the adventurous young wizard who sets out to make shy, sheltered Cordelia fall in love with him in one week.

She was so caught up in her book that she didn't notice when Hermione came to stand in front of her. She did notice when Hermione spoke up.

"Oh! _Charms for the Charming_! I've been wanting to read that for ages! I'd love to borrow it when you've finished. May I take a quick look?"

All of this was said with Hermione's normal rapid speech that always took Ginny several moments to catch everything she'd said. By the time the redhead had realized Hermione had requested taking a look at her romance novel, the book was already out of her hands and being read by the older witch.

Hermione's eyes widened at what she was reading and then glanced at a blushing Ginny.

"It's nothing to be embarrassed about," her friend had said. "Come on, I've something to show you." Hermione pulled Ginny out of the library and into the room they were sharing.

When they reached the bedroom, Hermione looked around furtively and then unearthed a rucksack that had been hidden under a stack of neatly folded robes. She pulled a small book out and handed it to Ginny. The cover showed a witch sitting in a chair reading a book, while in the background a handsome man watched her from another table. It was entitled _Until the End._

"I happen to like reading those books, too." The older witch giggled a little. For the first time, Ginny realized she really could share girly things with her friend. From then on, they swapped books and all Christmas and birthday presents were dedicated to expanding each other's small collections.

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Now, Ginny was eighteen years old. She had outgrown the books, mostly. Every so often, however, she would reread one of her favourites. _Charming Cordelia_ was the one she reread most often. It wasn't hard to imagine Kale, the dark-haired adventurer, as Harry and she knew exactly how Cordelia felt when her over-protective uncle refused to allow the young woman to leave his castle's courtyard.

In the books, it always seemed that the hero and heroine took a long time to admit their feelings to each other and share that heated first kiss. It never failed that they fell into bed quickly after that and were soon married, although Ginny's mum would have been happy to know that several of the books had the witch and wizard marrying _before_ falling into bed.

Yet, there were no books where the hero kissed the heroine passionately, shared a few weeks of hand-holding, and then broke up with the heroine to go chase down an evil Dark Lord. She _had _read several books where the hero would seek out the heroine the day after he defeated said Dark Lord, admit that he loved her, and then kiss her fervently.

Instead of falling into bed or proposing marriage (which Ginny had been thankful hadn't come up yet since her mother didn't need any more incentive to plan their wedding), her relationship with Harry was pretty much the same as it had been for just over a year now.

It wasn't that there was no romance in their relationship. Harry said "_I love you_" frequently. He held her hand and snogged the daylights out of her. He brought her flowers and took her out on dates.

But he never touched her anywhere else. He never tried to sneak into her room or asked her to stay at Grimmauld Place with him. Their relationship seemed like the juvenile version she had dreamt of as a first year.

She was starting to wonder if something was wrong with him, or her, or both of them. She needed help, but had no idea to whom she should talk.

Hermione was a natural choice, but any advice from Hermione would be based on her friend's experience with Ron. Ginny made it a point to have no idea of what her brothers did with their partners. Even when she tried to avoid knowing anything, she still knew too much. Seeking advice from Hermione was just asking to be committed to the long-term ward at St. Mungo's. Asking Fleur, Audrey, or Angelina was inadvisable for the same reason.

Ginny considered asking Ron, and if all else failed he was with whom she planned to speak. Ron was her only brother who had been completely supportive of her relationship with Harry. He had never threatened Harry besides telling his friend that he'd better not break up with Ginny to go fight a Dark Lord again. Ginny thought it was the "fighting a Dark Lord" that Ron objected to rather than breaking up with her. Her other brothers had given Harry menacing speeches about not hurting their baby sister, while Ron had warned Ginny that she'd better not hurt his best mate.

Ron also had a lot of insight into Harry, which might be helpful. However, the fact remained that she didn't want to know how experienced any of her brothers were and she doubted Ron would be happy about helping his sister make that kind of progress in her own relationship.

So Bill, Charlie, Percy, and George were out and Ron was a possibility if she had no other option.

There was absolutely no way Ginny would ask either of her parents for advice. Her mum would rant that Ginny was turning into a scarlet woman and corrupting Harry whereas her dad would make a noise that would be a cross between a squashed mouse and a dying toad. Neither was something she wanted to hear.

Unfortunately, that left only three other people: Luna, Dean and Neville. Luna had some really odd ideas about relationships; though she was another person to keep in mind if all else failed. Asking Dean for advice was just cruel and asking Neville would be as painful as asking one of her brothers.

In the end, it was a dream that answered the burning question: how do you get Harry Potter to take the next step?

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"_Kale watched the beauty at the end of Sir Liam's table. He had seen her sit there for the evening meal so many days and it was her innocent wonder that captivated him even more than her glorious golden hair or sparkling sapphire eyes. Tomorrow was Sunday and it would be the first day he put his plan into action. He would convince her to fall in love with him as deeply as he had fallen for Cordelia. She would be _charmed_ if it was the last thing he did. It would start the next day after the midday meal, with 'captivate.'"_

Ginny sighed, setting the book down and whispering, "Nox." This was her favourite part of the book. Kale wanted Cordelia to be charmed. Each day for a week he had a specific word as his theme. Together they formed CHARMED: captivate, heed, adventure, romance, marvel, entertain, and dream. His plan had been to give Cordelia what she had lacked all her life. Kale had wanted her to know she could confide in him and that he would give her a life outside of the secluded one she had lived. He showed her how to find adventure in climbing a tree and romance in a walk. By the end of the week, Cordelia was completely in love and her uncle gave his blessing to their union. The book ended with a spunky Cordelia and a very contented Kale.

Ginny drifted off to sleep, her thoughts full of scenes from her book.

"_Cordelia, what do I know of adventure? I've never been outside of these castle walls!" Kale's face was wistful as he stared off into the distance, trying in vain to see what was beyond the hills that surrounded the castle._

"_Adventure doesn't have to grand. Adventure is what you make of it," Cordelia said as she grabbed his hand. Kale's dark eyes looked uncertain, but he finally took her hand in his and allowed himself to be pulled out into the courtyard. She led him to a tall tree, and with a smile, pulled herself up onto the first low limb. Ginny's vibrant red hair swung around her as she turned to beckon Harry to join her. He looked around, undecided for a moment, before he gave a shy smile and allowed the adventurous woman to help him up. Together, they climbed higher and then sat on a sturdy limb, laughing at their daring and making up stories about brave wizards and fierce dragons._

Ginny woke up, the remnants of her dream still playing in her mind. It wasn't the first time her imagination had switched the roles of Cordelia and Kale, nor was it the first time she had dreamed of Harry and herself as the characters. She let the scene play for a few minutes, wondering if Cordelia would have used the same words to charm Kale.

'_That's it!'_ Suddenly inspired, Ginny sat up.

Unfortunately, after spending most of the morning on her only day off from practice trying to come up with seven words that she could use to charm Harry, she was still stuck.

It was time to talk to Ron.

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"Ah, Gin. I don't want to know this." It was one of life's truths that Ron Weasley could out-whine a four-year-old.

Ginny sighed. "I'm not asking you to tell me how I can get Harry to, um, do, er, more _things_ with me. I'm asking if you have any ideas as to _why_ holding my hand and snogging are okay, but anything else makes him jump back. We've been dating for a _year_, Ron. What am I doing wrong?" After spending all morning trying to think up words to help their relationship, Ginny had come to the conclusion that she was the problem.

Ron let out a huff of air and used both of his hands to ruffle his hair. It was a nervous habit he seemed to have picked up from Harry. After he paced back and forth, stopping occasionally to have a conversation with a voice only he could hear, he finally sat back down beside Ginny on the low stone wall that surrounded the Burrow's garden.

"It's not you," he finally said quietly. "Harry has a real problem with _touching_." He chewed on his bottom lip for a moment, thinking again and Ginny decided to interrupt.

"I know that. He always seems really uncomfortable whenever anyone hugs him or even sits too close to him. But shouldn't he _want_ to touch his girlfriend?" She looked away. "Am I asking too much of him?"

"No. It really isn't you. Listen, this isn't something he's ever really told me. I've pieced this together over the years from things he's said and done. It might not be right, but I think I'm close, okay?" Ginny nodded and her brother continued.

"You know how Mum and Dad always gave us hugs or patted us on the back or 'healed the ouchies with a kiss'? Harry never had that. His aunt and uncle didn't want him. He told me once that his uncle never followed through on his threats because he was afraid that if he touched Harry, the, er, _oddness_ would affect him too. His whole family was that way. I can't say for sure because it's not like Harry talks much about his childhood, but I'd bet that's why he isn't into, uh, touching." Ron's face was bright red and he was focused solely on the ground below him.

Ginny was impressed by her brother's insight and enraged both at Harry's family and herself. _'How could they be so cruel? Why didn't _I_ realize this?"_

"Thanks, Ron. I know what to do now." Ron looked up at her, startled. "I've got to teach Harry that touch can be good." She threw her brother a wicked smile when he groaned and made her way back to her room. Now she had to plan how to teach Harry about touch.


	2. Chapter 2

A/N: I forgot to post a disclaimer on the first chapter. Disclaimer: HP is not mine. This story is for fun, not profit.

A/N2: Thanks again, Jenn!

In the end it took her nearly a week to get all of her plans worked out. It had been much more difficult than Ginny had originally thought. She had spent the rest of her day off trying to come up with words that fit the acronym "T.O.U.C.H.E.S." There had been several different words she could use for "T," "C," and "S," but finding words for "O" and "U" had been beyond difficult.

She ended up scrapping the idea. Another thought had occurred to her while she and the other Chasers were attempting a variation of the Parkin's Pincher. The reserve Chaser that they were using the manoeuvre on had been completely oblivious. It had struck Ginny as she swiped the Quaffle from the startled woman that Harry would never get that the seven words spelled out T.O.U.C.H.E.S. since he was normally oblivious to such things. There was also the fact that he had an aversion to acronyms after putting up with Hermione's penchant for using them for everything.

That night she threw out all the parchment that she had scribbled her words on and began anew. When she had finished, Ginny couldn't help but be pleased with herself. Over the next three days, she worked out how she could demonstrate these words with Harry. The only problem she had left was convincing her boyfriend to go along with her idea.

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"You want to do what?" Harry said incredulously, with one eyebrow raised and his arms folded across his chest.

Ginny licked her lips nervously and tried again. "We aren't moving forward at all and I thought we could try something from one of my rom-, er, from a book. It, er, suggested taking seven words and acting them out over seven days."

Harry's face broke into a small smirk. "From a book, huh? I can see you now." He pitched his voice in a falsetto tone and batted his eyes. "'Oh, this will work! It's has to be true! I read it in a romance novel!' Come on, Ginny. We're fine. We're just not like your brothers. Besides, if we acted like them, they'd kill me!"

"I don't want to be like the prats, but I want us to move a little faster." She looked down trying to think of anything else that could convince him when he finally spoke up.

"Alright, I'll do this girly thing from your romance novels, but you can't tell Ron. Or George." He ran his fingers through his hair. "So touch, huh? What do I need to do?"

Ginny gave him a huge smile. "First of all, I need you to plan to get together with me at least one hour every evening next week. Can you do that?" Harry nodded. "Alright, every day we'll act out one of the words and I'll tell you the following day's word before we say goodnight so that you can prepare."

Harry nodded his head again. "So we'll start tomorrow, right? All the words have to be, er, acted out with, er, touch?"

"Yes, to both questions."

He sighed. "Okay. What's the word for tomorrow?"

"Support."

"Sup_port_?" Harry dragged out the word, looking completely confused.

"Yes, support."

He ruffled his hair again, sighed and then looked resigned. "Alright, whatever you say. I need to leave. I promised Andromeda I'd have dinner with them tonight." He leaned over and gave her a quick kiss on the cheek. "So I'll meet you here tomorrow around six and we'll act out, er, '_support.'"_

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Ginny watched as Harry shifted nervously side to side. She could admit that 'support' wasn't exactly the easiest word on her list, but it seemed like the best word to start with. Her plan was to start out slowly and work their way into more intimate touches.

"So, would you like to go first?" Harry looked startled and slightly green, but he was red and gold through and through. He sucked up his courage and moved so that he was directly behind Ginny.

"Okay, fall back," he whispered nervously. When she turned her head to face him with wide eyes, she saw he had his arms extended, ready to catch her. "Don't worry. I won't let you fall."

Ginny took a deep breath before allowing herself to fall back. His hands caught her just below her shoulders and he held her up, _supporting_ her. After a few moments, Ginny moved to stand upright and Harry shuffled his feet.

"Was that right?"

Ginny gave a small smile. "There's not really a right or wrong answer, Harry. I asked you to act out 'support' and you did wonderfully. I know you'd never let me fall."

Apparently Harry did catch the double meaning of her words as he looked up and gave her a shy smile. Ginny gestured for him to sit down on the blanket she had brought that was spread out under a large oak tree near the edge of the property. "Alright, it's my turn."

She sat beside him and twisted so that she could place her left hand gently onto his right shoulder. She smiled, hoping she looked encouraging, and then got onto her knees. Ginny moved her hand from his shoulder to his upper arm and gave him a quick squeeze. It wasn't difficult to see that Harry was confused.

Instead of answering him with words, she crawled behind him. Her hands were tender in their touches, almost as if she was dealing with a skittish animal. In a way, she felt like she was. Harry was tense and seemed ready to bolt at a moment's notice. The redhead tried not to get discouraged, however, as she patted him on the back, kneaded his shoulder gently and then ran both her hands up and down his arms.

Finally, she pressed herself lightly against his back, wrapped her arms loosely around him and placed a soft kiss on the back of his neck. The happy sigh that escaped him was felt all the way to her toes and Ginny smiled, pressing her face more firmly against him. Now she could explain herself.

"You are the one person I trust to always support me. When I asked you what you thought about me playing Quidditch professionally, you told me I'd be brilliant. You said any team would be lucky to have me and that you loved watching me play. No one else thought I could or should try out. They all wanted me to do something else, something that was _them_ and not me. But you supported me."

Ginny stopped talking to draw a breath. In that moment Harry slowly reached up one of his hands to clasp hers. It was difficult for Ginny not to shout out in triumph. Instead, she went on with her explanation.

"I want you to know I will always support you, no matter what. I worry so much about you, but I know you're happy fighting the bad guys. Even if we don't know how to tell each other with words that we support one another, we can always tell each other this way."

They stayed in that position for several minutes longer before Ginny let go and stood up.

"How about we go for a fly?" Harry smiled and nodded. They walked to the broom shed talking about George's new products. Just before they took off, Harry grabbed Ginny's hand and gave it two quick squeezes.

Later that evening as Harry was getting ready to Apparate to his home, Ginny whispered, "Calm."

Harry gave her a startled look and then disappeared with a louder than normal _crack._

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Harry stood in front of Ginny, looking even more nervous, and possibly even frightened, than he had the previous day. Either way, he was far from calm. While Ginny didn't like that he was worked up, it would help her point if she could prove that touch could help to relax him.

"Do you want me to go first again?" Ginny nodded and waited for Harry to make a move.

He did, in a big way. She hadn't known what to expect, but a passionate kiss hadn't been something she would have thought for "calm."

When Harry finally pulled away from her, she smiled at him and gave a little giggle. "Okay, that was about the opposite of calm!"

Her boyfriend stepped back and seemed to close in on himself a little. At first, Ginny didn't know what to do, but then remembered 'support' and wrapped her arms around him, lightly rubbing his back. "I'm sorry I laughed, Harry. I just don't understand how a kiss like _that_ is supposed to be calming."

"That's what I do whenever we fight and you're really angry," he mumbled. "It always seems to calm you down."

Ginny had to smile at that. "I probably would have called it distraction, but you're right. I'm usually much calmer. Ten points to Gryffindor, Mr. Potter."

He laughed. Ginny enjoyed feeling his joy radiate from his chest into her own. "Alright, oh wise one. It's your turn."

She had planned to have him sit down again, but instead decided to stay as she was. One of her hands found one of his and she stroked his palm lightly with her thumb. Then she moved both of her hands to his temples and rubbed delicate circles on the tender flesh there. Soon Harry's eyes had closed and he leaned his head forward until his forehead touched hers.

"I like your 'calm' just as much as mine," he whispered, ending on a slight groan.

"We trust each other enough that we can seek each other out if we need to calm down," she whispered back as she moved her hands down to his shoulders. She massaged the taut muscles more firmly than she had the day before. "Or if we need to relax. Isn't touch wonderful?"

They headed back to the Burrow where chocolate biscuits awaited when she had finished easing some of the tension in his shoulders.

Harry gave her a shrewd look just before they entered the house. "What's tomorrow?"

"Comfort."

Harry groaned.

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"Let's get this over with." Harry pulled Ginny into an awkward hug and patted her on the back three times before releasing her and stepping away. He ran his fingers through his hair agitatedly several times. Ginny was worried he'd make himself go bald with the force he was using.

Her plan had been to hug him, but now something else came to mind. "Sit up against the tree." Harry gave her a bewildered look, but did as she requested. Ginny sat close beside him and leaned her head back against his shoulder. She smiled when his arm came up automatically and their fingers laced together.

"This is how you comforted me at Fred's funeral." Harry jolted a little. Ginny crawled away from him, then turned and faced him. "Take my hand and squeeze it tightly," she requested.

Harry got to his own knees and leaned forward, placing his larger hand on top of her small one and then gave it one tight squeeze.

"This is how you comforted me when I woke up in the Chamber of Secrets." This time Harry jerked back, nearly smacking up against the tree trunk.

"Harry, you already know how to comfort people, or at least me. You've done perfectly every time you've offered me comfort. You just let your head over think it. Giving someone comfort isn't about doing the exact right thing. It's about lending your strength to someone who needs it at that moment."

Harry stood up, looking distressed. "I need to think about this one." He sighed, facing away from Ginny. "What, er, what's tomorrow's word?" His whole body was tense and Ginny thought for one wild moment that they should stop this whole crazy idea.

"It's indulge."

"Oh. I'll see you at six." Then he was gone and Ginny was left to wonder if this idea was making things worse.

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Ginny was worried that Harry was going to stand her up today when her watch showed half past six. It shouldn't have surprised her after how uncomfortable he had been the previous evening, but it did. Harry was always considerate.

Just as she was getting ready to head back to her home, a brilliant white stag galloped up to her. He bowed his head and Harry's voice vibrated the air around her. "I'm sorry, love. Bad guys are really inconsiderate of people's schedules. I'm just finishing up here and I should be at the Burrow a little after seven. I love you." It was surreal to hear Harry's voice come from the stag, but it made her smile all the same.

Instead of heading back to the Burrow to wait for Harry to arrive, she stayed under the tree, watching as the sun sank lower and simply enjoying what was left of the evening. Sooner than she had expected, there was a soft crack several yards away. Harry turned his head back and forth disoriented and then he turned completely to face Ginny.

"I'm really sorry, Ginny. We had this guy we've been tracking for..." He trailed off when he saw Ginny hold up her hand.

"I understand. Thanks for sending a message. I appreciate it." She stood up and they walked to each other until they were toe to toe.

"So, er, indulge. Am I suppose to indulge you or, er, me?" His face was slightly flushed and Ginny watched the pink in his cheeks travel to his neck before she answered.

"You can indulge you, or me, or both of us. It doesn't really matter."

Harry nodded, lifting his hand to her shoulder. He paused for a moment and then lowered his mouth to kiss her. Ginny was so lost in the kiss that she was slightly startled when the hand on her shoulder shifted the neck of her loose shirt so that it was just off her shoulder. He broke the kiss and watched his hand as it lightly traced from her shoulder to her collarbone and over to just under her neck. His brilliant green eyes were intense.

Ginny was certain that he'd pull back quickly, but just when she thought he'd stop the back and forth movement of his hand, he lowered his mouth to her neck. Both of his hands made their way to her back and _under_ her shirt where they made gentle patterns over her lower back and sides.

It felt heavenly and she was a little disappointed when he finally stopped, breathing much harder than before.

He looked down shyly. "I've wanted to do that for a long time," he whispered. "I love your freckles."

She couldn't stop the jittery little giggle that escaped and Harry chuckled quietly as well. "I think you definitely indulged us both." Taking his hand, she led him over to the well-worn blanket that had been in this same spot with them for the last few days. "I'm planning on indulging us both as well. If you're comfortable with it, that is."

Harry gave her a questioning look. "I'd like you to take off your shirt and lay down on your stomach." He looked undecided for a moment, but then nodded and proceeded to remove his shirt.

No one would call Harry Potter muscular. Even after a year of eating food prepared by her mum and Kreacher, he was still a little thinner than looked healthy. The muscles he did have were well defined, however, and Ginny indulged herself by looking her fill.

Once he had lain down, Ginny came to her next dilemma. She desperately wanted to straddle his waist, but didn't think he'd be comfortable with her doing that. Instead she kneeled beside him and began rubbing his back. She had asked Luna for advice on this and tried hard to do what the blonde had said. _'Hold your hands lightly above his muscles to see if you can feel heat coming from them. Those are places that may be inflamed and would be sore. Rub gently to feel for knots and then work them outward, away from his spine.'_

There had been many other things Luna had told her, most of which Ginny knew Harry would object to right now. She hoped that she'd get to use her friend's advice on her boyfriend one day, sooner rather than later.

It didn't take long before Harry was giving quiet moans and grunts. Whenever she came across an especially tender area, he'd suck his breath in and tense up for a short time until she had soothed the spot. She worked her hands over his back and shoulders, his neck, and then his arms, even rubbing his hands and fingers.

Then she moved back within easy reach of his back and dragged her fingernails lightly over his back, which drew a much louder moan of pleasure from him. It seemed Harry very much enjoyed having his back scratched. When Ginny moved her fingers to just under the waist of his jeans, he tensed up a little, but groaned happily when she scratched the strip of skin that the coarse material rubbed up against.

Once Ginny finally sat back, Harry got up and pulled his shirt on again. He sat down next to her, pressing a lingering kiss to her temple.

"I really like 'indulge,'" he said.

"Me, too," she replied, leaning up against him. "Tomorrow is 'accept.'"

"Alright, tomorrow is 'accept.'" Harry smiled at her and they sat together, watching the sunset.

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"I'm not really sure how to act out 'accept' with touch, so is it okay if I talk?" Harry asked almost as soon as he arrived. "I mean, there will still be touching, but I don't think the touch really demonstrates 'accept.'"

Ginny smiled at him. "It isn't as though we can't change our own rules, you know. The world will still turn and broomsticks will still fly if we can't come up with the right touch for a word."

Her boyfriend laughed a little uneasily and gestured for her to sit down in between his legs. She did and leaned back as he wrapped his arms around her. Ginny remembered sitting this way with him when they had dated those few perfect weeks in her fifth year, but she couldn't think of a time they had sat like this since then.

"My family isn't like yours," he began. "Aunt Petunia would fuss dramatically over Dudley and praise him for every little thing. She always did that, but it got worse when I started bringing home better grades than he did and it was always really nauseating for awhile after I had done accidental magic. _Now_ I understand that she wanted to make sure that Dudley wouldn't be shunted aside just because I could do magic and he couldn't, but I didn't know that for a long time.

"Uncle Vernon treated me like I had a dangerous disease. He'd only touch me to push or pull me somewhere and then he'd still grab my shirt." Harry sighed as he laid his head on Ginny's shoulder. "It's hard for me to accept that you actually want to touch me. That's what this week is about, right? Helping me to accept your touch?"

Ginny was quiet for awhile, long enough that Harry got a little impatient. "What are you thinking? The suspense is killing me, but I guess that's better than one of your hexes," he tried to joke.

"I had planned to kiss you and then attempt to take things a little further tonight. I was going to say that we could accept each other and that we'd learn together. That isn't right, though. What I had planned wasn't very _accepting_." She turned and wrapped her arms around him, pulling Harry into a tight embrace. "I accept that touching is not, er, comfortable for you. I accept that you try to overcome your, er, unease. I accept you, all of you."

Ginny waited nervously, hoping that, yet again, she hadn't said something that would upset him. "I accept that you'll never hurt me, even though it's my biggest fear." She sucked in her breath at his admission. "I accept that we both want to move, er, further than we have. I accept that it's okay to ask you what to do, since I don't really know."

They continued to embrace, laughing occasionally whenever one of them would make an inane "I accept" remark. They got sillier until at last Harry said, "I accept that in the next two days, you're probably going to try to have your wicked way with me."

Ginny laughed. "That's good, because I accept that tomorrow's word-of-the-day is 'stimulate.'"

Harry's eyes got wide and his Adam's apple bobbed up and down as he gulped.

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She could see how anxious Harry was in the way he shifted back and forth on his feet. Some days Ginny couldn't get any clues from what her boyfriend was thinking by the expressions on his face. Then there were the days like today when he was an open book. It was easy to see the moment he had found his courage. The determined look on his face made a tremor run down her spine and she could hardly stand the wait.

Ginny gasped in shock when his hands went immediately under her shirt, tracing the same pattern as they had two days before. Instead of staying on her back and sides, however, they made their way to her stomach as well. They rose slightly higher, but went no further. A fleeting thought crossed her mind, but she wasn't in the mood to ponder why the warmth of his hands made her shiver. At that moment he had kissed his way from her shoulder to under her ear and Ginny was convinced she'd never felt this _stimulated_ in her life.

She couldn't help moving her own hands to his chest. Although she desperately wanted to feel her hands on his bare skin again, when she attempted do so, Harry tensed up and drew away slightly. Not wanting to push the issue, she ran her hands from his shoulders to his stomach, causing his breathing to hitch deliciously against her neck.

It was all over far too soon in Ginny's opinion, but she was delighted to see her boyfriend was flushed and panting a little. She didn't feel she needed to explain anything after Harry spoke up.

"I _really_ liked that." He ruffled his hair, which was the only sign he was anxious. "I mean I knew touch could, er, stimulate, but I was always worried that we wouldn't be able to stop once we started. You know, since we're both sort of impulsive and tend to act without thinking." He actually smirked a little at her and she couldn't help returning the expression.

Inwardly, Ginny agreed wholeheartedly. She had planned on doing something similar for her demonstration of 'stimulate,' but decided it would probably be better if Harry's demonstration counted for the both of them.

Once they had settled down, they made their way to the Burrow. Ginny's mum had made Harry promise to eat with them that evening and he wasn't one to pass up Mrs. Weasley's cooking.

They weren't able to get a moment alone again before Harry needed to head to his place, so Ginny tried to be crafty about telling him the last day's word.

"I'll try to come up with something nice to '_offer'_ you tomorrow, Harry."

He seemed to understand. Unfortunately, her mum had caught the emphasis Ginny had placed on 'offer.' Since she didn't want to explain what she and Harry were doing, Ginny was forced to listen to a mild speech about what she should and shouldn't offer a boy.

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Ginny was nervous. She had planned to offer herself today, but the week hadn't gone as she had expected. In all honesty, she could have tried to push Harry into being a little more receptive to more risqué touches, but she'd been afraid she would scare him off. As it was, she felt the week had been a success. The problem was that Ginny wasn't sure what she would do to act out offer now.

When she heard the crack that signalled Harry's arrival, she turned. He looked at her, cocked his head to the side and furrowed his brow in thought. Then his face broke into a small smile and he held out his arms to her. As Ginny accepted his embrace, everything suddenly became clear and she knew what she would offer, but Harry started talking before she could do anything else.

"I feel like an idiot. I had no idea how to act out 'offer.' I spent all day thinking about it. Savage got on my case about being distracted." Ginny laughed into Harry's chest and waited for him to continue. "Then I get here and see you looking worried about something and I knew exactly what I should offer you. Did I pass?"

She nodded and then pulled away from him. "I had this whole week planned out before I even said anything to you." She paused taking a deep breath. "I planned to, uh, offer, um, myself."

Harry sucked in a breath and cut off what she had planned to say. "No, Ginny, that's... You don't have to... I'm not--"

"I know," she interrupted him. "I'm not either. I thought I was teaching you. How arrogant is that? It hadn't occurred to me that I thought something was wrong with us because I was basing our relationship on other people and my, er, books. I mean, I think this week really helped us, but I don't think we need to work so hard on moving faster physically. One day, we'll both be ready to go a little further. Then another day will be another step and eventually we'll both be ready to offer everything." She took another deep breath and looked up into his eyes as she placed a hand on either side of his face. "I'm sorry for trying to push you and acting like I knew everything."

"You're forgiven." He smiled at her offered apology, looking like he was ready to laugh. "I promise we'll get there one day. I'm really glad you're not ready either. I've been a little worried you'd decide I wasn't worth waiting on."

Ginny laughed. "Potter, you'd think by now you'd have realized that I'm too stubborn for my own good. I'll always wait for you."

They sat down beneath the tree that had become their own over the past week. "Do you think you could Summon us a couple of Butterbeers?" Ginny nodded and cast a quick spell. "I think that maybe it's time I offer to tell you some things I wouldn't offer to tell anyone else."

"I'd like that. I'd like to make the same offer."

With that, Harry and Ginny spent the next week meeting under their tree, talking about their pasts.

Ginny ended up giving her romance novels to Luna. The blonde had always said those types of books contained some of the most fantastical things in them.

She did send a copy of _Charming Cordelia_ to Romilda Vane. On the inside cover she wrote a message.

_You were right. There is a lot to learn from romance novels. My boyfriend and I appreciate all of your help. Hope this book can help you!_

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"Hey, Gin?" Harry looked like he was thinking really hard about something. He absentmindedly rubbed circles on her back through her thick jumper.

"Yes?"

"You know that week of, er, touches back in September?" She nodded, but he was looking off into the distance at something she couldn't see. Perhaps Harry was just contemplating the mystery of how George snuck another gnome past her mum to grace the top of the Christmas tree this year.

"Well, you weren't, you know, trying to, er, hint that, maybe I should, er, um." He sighed and ran his hands through his hair before turning and looking directly at Ginny.

"Didyouwantmetoproposeorsomething?"

Ginny's eyes got wide. "Did you say what I think you said?" Harry started to speak, probably to clarify what had just spewed forth moments before, but she clapped her hand over his mouth to stop him.

"Shhhh!" she hissed. "Don't say the "P" word anywhere near my mum! Are you crazy? She's been all twitchy lately. Yesterday she made Ron too ill to eat with all of the wedding hints!"

Ginny put her hand down. Harry raised an eyebrow at her and smirked before turning nervous again.

"Well? Is that what you were wanting?" He rushed on, cutting off her response. "I mean, if that's what you're wanting, I'm okay with that. I'd have to get my mu-, er something first, but, yeah, I can do that."

She put her hand against the side of his face, her smile getting wider when he leaned into her touch.

"I don't think I'm ready for that yet." Ginny was startled to see a disappointed look in her boyfriend's eyes. "It's just...I don't want to have a really long, um, waiting period and I don't think I'll be ready to get," here she paused to drop her voice to a barely audible whisper, "married for a couple of years."

Harry relaxed a bit and gave her a shy smile. "So if I surprised you sometime in the next couple of years, that'd be alright?"

"Yeah, that'd be alright." She smiled up at him while slipping a finger between two of his shirt's buttons to tickle his stomach. "Until then, we can just have fun with _touching_."

Harry started laughing when she got a particularly sensitive spot. Ginny caught Ron's eyes from across the sitting room when Harry tried to scramble away from her. She was gratified to see an approving smile on her brother's face.

When she finally stopped tickling him, Harry grinned up at her from where he'd fallen to the floor.

"By the way, who's Bambi Potter?"


End file.
